Record flooding causes levee breach in western Arkansas

National News

May 31, 2019

Traffic moves over the I-540 bridge as the Arkansas River floods along Adams Street Thursday, May 30, 2019, in Van Buren, Ark. (AP Photo/Michael Woods)

DARDANELLE, Ark. (AP) — A levee breached Friday along the Arkansas River, prompting a flash flood warning and evacuation of a rural area in western Arkansas.
Officials said the levee breached at Dardanelle, about 60 miles (95 kilometers) northwest of Little Rock. Yell County officials had anticipated the breach and urged residents in the nearby Holla Bend area to evacuate Thursday.
Emergency management officials say crews are going door to door to recommend evacuation for about 160 homes.
National Weather Service data showed a dip in the water level at Dardanelle, likely due to the breach. A flash flood warning was issued early Friday for the area, and forecasters said residents should be prepared for rapidly rising water.
The levee breached because of ongoing flooding along the Arkansas River, which began in Oklahoma.
Earlier this year, about two dozen levee systems were breached or overtopped during Missouri River flooding that devastated parts of Nebraska, Iowa and Missouri.